Rotary explosive-engine.



No. 783,336. Q I PATENTED FEB. 21, 1905.

O. R. TWITGHELL.

ROTARY EXPLOSIVB ENGINE.

APPLICATION FILED J'ULYBI, 1903.

' 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1 WW M No. 783,336- PATENTED FEB. 21, 1905.

G. R. TWITGHELL.

ROTARY EXPLOSIVE ENGINE.

APPLIOATION FILED JULY 31,1908.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

war/ NIT'ED STATES CHARLES R. TWITCHELL, OF DAYTON HEIGHTS, CALIFORNIA,ASSIGNOR Patented February 21, 190 5 PATENT Orrics.

TO BROWN -.WINSTANLEY MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF LOS AN- GELES,CALIFORNIA, A CORPORATION OF.CALIFORNIA.

ROTARY EXPLOSlVE-ENGINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 783,336, dated February21, 1905.

Application filed July 31,1903. Serial No. 167,748.

of Dayton Heights, in the county of Los Angeles and State of California,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in R0- taryExplosive-Engines; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full,clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enableothers skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use thesame.

The object of this invention is to provide simple and highly-eflicientmeans for actuating the controlling-valves of the several cylinders of arotary explosive-engine, such means being adjustable while the engine isin operation, so as to control the speed thereof.

The invention will be hereinafter fully set forth, and particularlypointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a view in perspective. Fig. 2is a similar view with parts broken away, but viewed oppositely toFig. 1. Fig. 3 shows in detail the connections between the piston-rodsand the stationary crank. Fig. 4: is a fragmentary view in perspective,showing the means for introducing the gases.

Referring to the drawings, 1 designates a supporting-base, and 2parallel uprights, one forming bearings for a stationary crank-shaft 3,preferably keyed to prevent rotation. The crank 24 on the inner end ofthe shaft 3 has a pin 5 extending laterally therefrom and designed toform the bearing for the inner ends of the piston-rods 6, whose pistonsare movable longitudinally of cylinders 7, fixedly mounted between twoparallel disks 8 and 9, the former being carried by the crank-shaft andthe latter by a second shaft in axial line with the crank-shaft andhaving its bearings in the other upright 2. The piston-rods at theirinner ends have laterally extended curved flanges 10, one of whichenters an annular channel or groove 12 in the face of crank 4 concentricwith thecrank-pin 5, while the other flanges of the several rods areengaged by a cap or collar 13, secured to the end of the crank-pin by abolt 14. In this way the inner ends of the several piston-rods aresecured to the crank-shaft, and while they are permitted tofreelyrevolve around pin 5 friction between the parts is greatlyreduced, and in addition thereto they may be readily removed uponloosening bolt 14 and withdrawing the cap or collar 13.

Concentric with the horizontal portion of the crank-shaft 3 and adjacentto the crank 4 thereof is a pinion 16, from which extends aright-angular arm 17, the free end whereof is coincident with an openingextending longitudinally through the crank-shaft. this opening islocated a rod 18, having a handle or crank on its outer end, while itsinner end is made fast to the free end of arm 17, so that by turning rod18 pinion 16 may be made to revolve. With this pinion mesh a series oflarger pinions or gear-wheels 19, having their bearings on the innerface of disk 8. Each of these gear-wheels carries a pin 20 for engaginga lever 21, fulcrumed on disk 8, one lever being provided for eachcylinder. These several levers at their outer ends engage valvestems 22,mounted in the exhaust-outlets of such cylinders. It follows from whathas i been said that the valve-actuating lever 21 of each cylinder isoperated once upon each revolution of its coacting gear-wheel 19. To ef-VVithin feet a change in the time or the position in of the engine-thatis to say, when it is desired to increase the speed of the engine theseveral geanwheels are so positioned through the instrumentality of rod18 and pinion 16 that the levers 21 will unseat the exhaustvalves soonerafter the explosion than when the levers being then postponed until thefull 8 force of the charge has been spent.

The exhaust from each cylinder-that is, the exhaust controlled by thelever-actuated valvespasses through a pipe or conduit 23, which opensinto disk 9. This disk is formed with two parallel spaced-apart walls,the intermediate chamber thus formed constituting a muffler, from whichthe burned gases may escape through exhaust-ports 24, formed in theouter wall thereof. The several cylinders may also be provided withauxiliary exhaustports 25, opening directly into the muffler, as clearlyshown in Fig. 2. In this way I avoid exhausting directly into theatmosphere, and the advantage of exhausting into a muffler rotating withthe several cylinders will be at once appreciated.

The charging-gases are introduced through an inlet-pipe 26, (shown inFigs. 1 and 4,) which is carried into one of the uprights 2 and opens atits inner end into an annular supply-chamber 27, through which the shaft3 is centrally extended. The hub 28 of disk 8, encircling shaft 3,extends into chamber 27 to near the outer wall thereof and is formedwith longitudinal ports 29, through which the charge passes to pipes orconduits 30 and through them into the explosion-chambers 31 of'theseveral cylinders. There the charge is exploded by any suitable means,although I prefer to employ the jump-spark, which may be communicatedthrough wires 32, secured to contact-posts 33, which posts engage anelectrically-charged pin 34 of a lever 35, carrying a secondelectrically-charged pin 36, designed to be engaged by a pin 37 of apinion 38, which meshes with a pinion 39, mounted on hub 28. The primaryconnection is with pin 36, while the secondary connection is had withpin 34, the complementary wires of each connection being secured to thebase at any point.

The operation is as follows: The actuating medium being introducedthrough inlet-pipe 26 is, as is well known, induced into theexplosion-chambers by the downward or inward movements of the pistons,the gases freely traveling from the annular chamber27through ports 29and conduits 30 into the explosionchambers of the several cylinders.After the explosion occurs in a cylinder (and it is by the severalexplosions that the cylinders and the two diskscarried thereby arecaused to rotate around the stationary crank-shaft) the burned gases arepermitted to escape into the muffler upon the several levers 21 beingactuated by pins 20 of gear-wheels 19 to unseat the exhaust-controllingvalves. To stop the engine or to regulate the speed, it is onlynecessary to turn rod 18 so that through pinion 16 the lever-actuatinggear-wheels will be rotated in their bearings independently of theirrevolution with their carrying disk. The engine is of the four-cycletype, the charge of each alternate cylinder being exploded as theyrevolve around the crank-shaft. This is due to the fact that thegear-pinion 39 has half as many more teeth as the gear-pinion 38.

While I have shown in the drawings a preferred form of construction forcarrying out my invention, yet it is to be understood that I do notconfine myself to any special form of mechanism for accomplishing theobject of myinvention.

I claim as my invention 1. In a rotary explosive-engine, in combination,a series of cylinders having exhaustcontrolling valves, means foroperating the valves, means independent of the valve-operating means forperiodically actuating suchmeans during the revolutions of thecylinders, and means for regulating or adjusting, while the engine is inoperation, the time of actuation of such periodically-actuating means tocontrol the speed of the engine.

2. In a rotary explosive-engine, in combination, a series of cylindershaving exhaustcontrolling valves, levers for actuating the same, meansindependent of said levers for operating them periodically during therevolutions of the cylinders, and means for regulating or adjusting,while the engine is in operation, the time of actuation of such leversby said latter means.

3. In a rotary explosive-engine, in combination, a series of rotarycylinders, means rotating therewith for eflecting the exhaust therefrom,a series of gear-wheels independent of but designed to actuate suchmeans, an independently mounted pinion with which said gear-wheelsengage, and means for turning such pinion to adjust the positions ofsaid gear-wheels relatively to said exhausteffecting means forcontrolling the speed of the engine. 4. In a rotary explosive-engine, incombination, a series of rotary cylinders, means rotating therewith foreffecting the exhaust therefrom, comprising a series of levers forunseating the exhaust-valves,gear-wheelsmounted independently of saidlevers and having pins for engaging the latter to allow the sev eralcylinders to exhaust, an independentlyinounted pinion with which saidgear-wheels engage, and means for turning such pinion to adjust thepositions of said' gear-wheels and their pins relatively to said levers,to control the speed of the engine.

5. The combination with the hollow shaft, of the series of cylindershaving their pistonrods engaging such shaft, each cylinder hav ing meansfor controlling the exhaust, comprising a lever and a coactinggear-wheel mounted independently of the lever, a pinion concentric Withsaid shaft by which the several In testimony whereof I have signed thisgear-wheels are rotated as they revolve therespecification in thepresence of two subscribaround, and a crank-rod extended through saiding Witnesses.

shaft and connected to said pinion for turn- CHARLES R. TWITCHELL. ingthe latter to effect the adjustment of said Witnesses: gear-wheelsrelative to their respective levers, J. N OTA MCGILL,

as set forth. E. Gr. STICKNEY.

